Koo Yooncheol: "Negotiations Were Like War... No Discussion on Further Rice Market Opening"

On August 1, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Koo Yooncheol dismissed concerns that further opening of the Korean rice market was discussed during trade negotiations with the United States. He described the negotiations as "a process akin to war."

Yonhap News Agency

Returning from his trip to the United States, Deputy Prime Minister Koo met with reporters at Incheon Airport and responded to a question about the White House spokesperson's mention of opening the Korean rice market. He stated, "There was no discussion whatsoever regarding rice."

He added, "We need to verify what the U.S. announcement actually means." Previously, on July 31 (local time), White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said during a briefing that "Korea has agreed to open its market to American products such as automobiles and rice, in exchange for lowering mutual tariffs and auto tariffs to 15%."

Deputy Prime Minister Koo remarked, "It was a negotiation process akin to war," and explained, "With the agreement we have reached, we plan to develop concrete strategies and respond proactively during detailed negotiations with the United States." He further assessed, "I believe that partnering with the United States will actually enable Korea's national prosperity," and added, "Through a strategic alliance, this is a great opportunity for the Korean economy to once again become number one in the world."

Regarding the $350 billion (approximately KRW 487 trillion) investment Korea has agreed to make in the United States in exchange for lowering the tariff rate to 15%, he explained, "Of that, $150 billion will be invested strategically in the shipbuilding sector together with the United States, and I will ensure we approach this strategically." He continued, "The remaining $200 billion relates to the security strategy sector, which, simply put, includes areas where Korea has competitive strength such as semiconductors, batteries, energy, bio, and pharmaceuticals."

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Kim Jeonggwan, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, who returned with Deputy Prime Minister Koo, commented, "The outcome of this tariff negotiation is not so much that it is a good result, but that it prevented the worst-case scenario." He added, "If the negotiations had failed, we would have faced serious repercussions." Minister Kim also shared, "During the negotiations, I truly understood what it means when people say their nerves are frayed," and elaborated, "While talking with Howard Lutnick, the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, whenever something unfavorable to him was mentioned, he would say, 'Let's just impose a 25% tariff,' and would start to get up from his chair, and we had to persuade him to stay and continue the talks."

Yeo Hangoo, Chief Negotiator for Trade, remarked, "What I felt during these negotiations is that the U.S. trade environment is fundamentally changing," and described it as "a truly new normal, very different from the first Trump administration." He expressed concern, stating, "Although we have overcome this crisis, we cannot be at ease, as tariff or non-tariff pressures could arise at any time in the future."

Regarding the question of whether the quarantine process will be reduced, he replied, "No," and explained, "Currently, the quarantine process consists of eight stages under the supervision of the Ministry of Agriculture, and we must maintain that." Chief Negotiator Yeo also mentioned that this negotiation was conducted mainly verbally, without a written agreement.